Search - Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers on DVD

Don S. from DORR, MI
Reviewed on 11/29/2010...

Documentary portraying the actions of U.S. corporate contractors in the U.S.-Iraq war.

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Emotion reigns in this ranting film

Shaphan Richardson | Murrells Inlet, SC | 03/08/2009

(2 out of 5 stars)

"[I am in the US Army.]
This is not a documentary. It is made up of interspersed interviews with people who fit into four categories: families of civilian contractors who died, civilian contractors who survived an attack, eyewitnesses of wasteful spending by companies with government contracts, and former Soldiers of unknown character complaining about the use of civilian contractors in Iraq. Wrongdoing should be punished. This film never clears up whether it is against wasteful spending or against the use of civilian contractors altogether. The film's arguments are too broad and, sometimes, random and confusing. Several times, the statement is made that "this war has been privatized to a greater extent than any other war in history." This is an asinine comment. With a new type of war being fought over the course of almost a decade, now, of course private companies will be employed more than before. Statements like these are devoid of value in the greater debate of how to regulate wasteful spending by these large corporations. Another frustrating element of this film is that the images from Iraq are not related to the story being told at that time. It's confusing for the viewer. Interviews with people who had first-hand knowledge of the wasteful spending were effective, but few, and as a result, the filmmaker spread them throughout the film, which watered down the effectiveness of their accounts. Unfortunate.
As a Soldier, I found the complaints about contractors living in better quarters than tent-bound Soldiers ridiculous. Soldiers, Marines, Sailors, and Airmen have given their lives to their Country and are willing to sleep in muck and grime for the sake of the cause. Civilians, brave and heroic them all, need a softer touch. The men and women of the U.S. Military are happy to sleep wherever the mission takes us. Keep your pity to yourself. Of course Soldiers are going to living in the suck, suffer, bleed, and die; that's our calling. We love it! We're here, on the wall, so you don't have to be. Just say thank you and move on.
The emotional outcry against Halliburton as a demonic overlord is very compelling; however, not backed by enough evidence to be completely persuasive. The speakers are mostly just making accusations that sound reasonable, but are not substantiated within the film itself. (This only makes the fact that there is a special feature on the DVD aimed at organizing protesters more laughable. Is it possible to organize protesters based solely on unsubstantiated claims, reasonable or not?) Someone is going to make money on the privatization of jobs by the U.S. Government. The American economy is built on the concept of companies doing what they can, within ethical boundaries, to make money. That shouldn't be discouraged. Only wrongful profiteering should be punished. This film does not clearly delineate between the two, so the viewer is never sure which is under attack.
There are two redeeming qualities in the film: First, the opening story of the Blackwater employee, who died in an ambush, was touching. The family's argument that an ambush, by definition a surprise attack, could have been avoided was heart-wrenchingly naïve. The second redeeming comment was the argument that more Iraqi civilians should have been hired, thereby getting them off the street and winning a PR battle, was very enlightening. (This approach worked in Germany and Korea.) Too bad the rest of the film is simply an emotional debate and not one backed up by actual evidence, but rather logical assumptions on the part of the individual interviewees. Pass this one up."

A Critical Look at what is going on in Iraq

Chung Dynasty | 08/12/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"As much as this film is important, it shouldn't be
regarded as this is everything what goes inside Iraq.
It is largely about privatization of the war and what
is going on with these defense contractors such as
Halliburton, KBR, and Black Water. These three are the
most prominent names, but it is quite astonishing that
there are tens of thousands of government contractors
within that nation.

How much can we go on like this, costing us trillions of
dollars, more than 5000 dead troops, and more than a million
dead Iraqis? Is it really the US government's intent to
rebuild Iraq after purging of Saddam Hussein or is it to
use the nation as a geopolitical strategic point in Middle East?
Oil is definitely large part of Iraq and I am amazed that
there are actually people who deny this fact.

The US is on the way to collapse like the Soviet Union, that
is burdened with two major wars that are failing miserably
and trapped with financial disasters that dwarf what happened
in Japan two decades. It is very possible and we are already
witnessing the beginning of the end of the world's largest empire
in history. I just hope we will be able to mitigate some effects
of catastrophe that will inevitably take place by combination of
peak oil, environmental disasters, economic turmoils,
and loss of liberty and morality."